India, Part 10

The last night we were at Riverside school, the students put on a cultural show for us with a tribal dance to represent each state of northeast India.  They were really impressive.

It seemed to me that, as the students put on their costumes and performed, they went into another world, one that runs deep in their blood.  The smiles were mostly gone, and the rhythms of the music drove the movement.

The themes were about courting and war and harvest, all clearly conveyed through body movements.

I'd say that more of the dancers were girls than boys, but there were a good number of boys performing.  When they didn't have the original tribal accouterments (as in the headdresses above), they improvised from paper or regular clothing substitutions.

We'd been looking forward to this program, as we'd heard the music for several days as they practiced out behind the principal's house, next to our guest house.

Most of the dances were hilltribe dances, but this one with the saris was more stereotypically Indian, complete with Bollywood music and coy smiles.

I don't know what this dance was called, but it was done with bamboo poles and fancy stepping, just like the Philippino "tinikling" dance with which I'm familiar.  It's the tribal version of jump rope.  Here's a video so that you can see how it works:

This dance, a shuffling, harvest thanksgiving dance, comes from the region immediately surrounding Riverside school--the Garo Hills of Meghalaya state.

I was surprised that some of the dancers didn't faint of heat.  In some cases, their clothing is made of wool.  I imagine those are the costumes of the tribes who live in the foothills of the Himalayas, which make up much of northeast India.  It's much cooler in those places than where we were, just north of the Bangladesh.

Finally, we had one group of dancers pose with the Mister and the Missus, providing yet another intriguing photograph in the ongoing annals of their travels for our next Christmas letter.